


Distractions

by anxiousgeek



Category: NCIS
Genre: F/M, I know I KNOW, I'm doing a rewatch okay?, Kate Lives, Kibbs, Kisses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:55:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27246892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anxiousgeek/pseuds/anxiousgeek
Summary: Three times a kiss saved Kate Todd's life.
Relationships: Ari Haswari/Caitlin Todd, Jethro Gibbs/Caitlin Todd
Comments: 16
Kudos: 46





	1. Hesitation

**Author's Note:**

> Three short fics that aren't related to one another cause Kate Todd was/is my favourite. Still.

She’s had moments like this before.

She palms the scalpel. She has a plan, sees it in her mind, every step laid out. She knows she often talks without thinking but she rarely acts without thinking, without relying on instincts honed from years of training. 

Moments of complete clarity tinged with panic that saved her life. Most of them since meeting Gibbs and joining NCIS, she realises. As much as she curses the man though, she appreciates everything he’s done for her. Appreciated everything he’s taught her.

Appreciates him.

It’s that thought that makes her hesitate.

She’s not sure exactly why. 

Ducky warns her against it, and she can’t help but taunt the man with the gun because, well, she doesn’t always think before she speaks. Still, it doesn't stop her from trying, from going ahead with her quickly formed plan. 

She looks into the terrorist eyes, scalpel going for his neck, aiming straight for his carotid artery. He blocks her, twists her arm around, holds her close. She thinks she can still get a lunge in but instead of trying again she pauses. Hesitates.

Hesitation gets people killed. She can hear Gibbs’ voice in her head like a damn conscience and she’s still thinking about this when the terrorist kisses her. The shock stills in her into inaction for a moment, she’s still thinking about Gibbs and she can’t figure out if that’s weird or not. When the terrorist tilts his head to deepen the kiss though, it doesn’t matter. He still has his gun trained on Ducky, still has them held hostage, still has really soft lips but it doesn’t matter.

She moves, responds, kisses back.

Thrusts the scalpel into his neck.

She doesn't hesitate a second time. As he stumbles back she goes for the gun in his hand as he clutches at the wound in his neck. He's on the floor when she puts a bullet in each arm; in the elbow joints for good measure aware of the body armour he wears. 

She's still got to gun trained on him when she feels a band on her arm. she whirls around, gun pointed at the newcomer. It's not until she hears him say her name- warm and reassuring- that she realises it's Gibbs and lowers her arm. She drops the gun and it clatters to the ground at the dead man's feet.

" You're okay Katie," he murmurs and she nods dumbly. 

"Gerald?"

He nods towards a gurney being wheeled away by two Paramedics while Ducky explains everything they need to know about Gerald's shoulder and few things they don't need to know. Kate wonders how long she's actually been standing there with a gun trained on What she hopes is a very dead man. 

she turns to look but his hand is on her arm again, turning her away and leading her out of autopsy finally. 

" You okay, you need a medic?” he asks, guiding her into the elevator. "Did he hurt you?"

There is a bruise blooming across her cheek, she can feel it and it's going to ache for a week but that's not what comes out of her mouth.

"He kissed me."

He reaches past her and flicks the switch for the emergency brake. He stares at her for a moment and she can tell he’s trying to figure out what he wants to say, what he wants to feel but he’s not one for talking about...well anything.

Kate however can’t seem to stop herself.

“I kissed back.”

A dark look passes over his face, it’s a flash, sadness she thinks, then it’s gone. The soft voice is back when he speaks, but there is a bite, an edge that she knows well now.

“You kissed him back?” he asks.

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

She shakes her head, clearing it, answering it, debating it. She had been pretty sure in autopsy, absolutely certain why she’d kissed him back. She considers humour, considers a smile and a joke and to play it off like it doesn’t matter.

It matters to Gibbs though, she can tell but she doesn’t know why it matters. 

“I don’t know,” she admits. “He had kind eyes,” she says, not meeting his as she speaks. “And it was distracting.” 

“His eyes or the kiss?” he asks, voice low, the edge sharpening.

“Both,” she whispers. “The kiss distracted him more,” she adds, too quickly, “gave me my chance to move. To kill him.” Her voice breaks then and he moves closer, still not touching.

“You saved Ducky and Gerald’s life,” he tells her, “stopped a terrorist.” His voice is all warmth now, all rough Gibbs and she takes a deep breath, relaxes into the sensation of his voice. “You did good Kate.”

She nods and after a moment he flicks the switch. With a slight jolt, the lift starts moving again and Kate wants to shield her eyes from the harsh light. From his gaze.

“Why do you think he did it?” she asks. “Why do you think he kissed me?”

Gibbs smiles then, a huff of laughter in his sigh. The doors slide open and he throws the words back to her as he steps off the elevator.

“Because you’re beautiful Kate.”


	2. Jealousy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe they’re just sleeping together but there’s something going on between them; if the looks Marta keeps throwing at her are anything to go by.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second AU of ways Kate isn't killed by Ari.

She doesn’t know what the relationship between the blonde woman - Marta - and Ari is. Whether they are lovers or just members of the same cell. She doesn’t know if they care for one another or if it’s just physical.

There’s definitely something though. Maybe they’re just sleeping together but there’s something going on between them; if the looks Marta keeps throwing at her are anything to go by. She’s mostly pretending to read. The glare isn’t quite threatening, Kate is pretty sure she can take the Swedish Hamas terrorist, but it’s constant.

It took her a little while to twig what it is.

It’s jealousy.

It takes her longer to realise that it’s because of Ari and the way the terrorist looks at Kate. He watches her every move not because he needs to, not to stop her from getting away but because he wants to. Because he enjoys it. Even in her anger, he likes the way she looks. She may be awful at reading Gibbs but the profiler in her definitely sees his attraction to her.

Which confuses her all the more - he’s not a terrorist - not in the traditional sense. She’s sure of that. But she’s not sure what his motivations are.

He takes another sip of his wine, sitting opposite her at the picnic table. Kate has spied a lot of missiles, a lot of weapons. Marta has her 9mm on the table, and another smaller weapon tucked into her shorts. If she’s smart she’ll have a knife somewhere too as Kate has.

Had.

Ari was thorough in searching her, something else that probably annoyed the blonde.

They’ve watched the others leave, missiles hidden in boats and trucks, she’s guessed correctly every time which shell the pea is under, much to his amusement and Marta’s annoyance. She knows exactly why she’s here. Why Marta is here.

She’s not sure why he is here though.

“The President is flying to Camp David with Sharon today,” she says, “I saw those missiles. You want to know which helo is Marine One to shoot it down!”

He smirks and she wishes she could reach across the table and punch him in the face. Without Marta shooting her.

“Those tiny missiles are mere training aids. In any case, I have no intention of shooting down Marine One.”

“You're a lying bastard,” she tells him, making Marta laugh before the blonde mutters an apology.

“Unfortunately, half of that is true.”

She takes a deep breath to stop from lunging at one of them.

“There is no way to tell them apart,” she states, glaring, “And even if there was I wouldn’t tell you.”

Marta holds up her own weapon, “Even if it meant your life?”

“Are you willing to die for what you believe in?” Kate asks, already knowing the answer.

“We Hamas prove that every day!” Marta snaps, pointing the gun at her

“No. Your children do,” Kate snaps back.

“Marta, give me her gun,” he says, reaching out for it.

“We are wasting time.”

“The gun Marta please, if killing is to be done, I will do it,”

She hands him the gun and instead of pulling on the weapon he pulls on her wrist instead, pulling her across the table. His eyes are on Kate the entire time he manoeuvres the blonde over to him, only slipping closed when their lips meet.

Kate reacts.

It’s all instinct, and later, when she tries to recall it for her report, for her statement, she won’t be able to give them a clear picture of what happened. Only that she makes a grab for her gun that the two of them are holding. In the panic, as they all pull apart and Marta is shot.

She’s pretty sure it’s Ari who pulls the trigger.

And he’s about to say something, she’s sure, but she doesn’t give him a chance to plead for his life as she manages to get control of her weapon.

The bullet is not quite dead centre, something she is sure Gibbs will pick up on later. Either way, he falls back to the ground with Marta and she slumps back, almost losing balance herself. It takes her a moment, to breathe, to check no one is coming at the sounds of gunshots before she realises she should get her phone. She’s sure one of them has it but instead, she grabs the cell off the table and dials Gibbs’ number.

It’s in her speed dial on her own phone but she knows it by heart.

Not because of her secret service level of observance but because she knows he’s the first person she would call if she were in trouble. No matter what.

“Gibbs.”

He’s there twenty minutes later, in a car with Ducky looking a little white and the FBI and NCIS truck behind him. He ignores the bodies on the floor, kneeling down in front of Kate to bring himself level with her, Ducky hovering behind her with his medical bag. She doesn’t know what to expect, after how angry he’s been all day, how he’s been working mostly on caffeine and ideas of revenge for the past six months but the gentle swipe of his thumb over her cut lip surprises her.

She welcomes it though.

“You okay Katie?” he asks, voice just as gentle.

She can see her team, the FBI, Fornell, hovering in the background too, waiting for a sign they can move in and process the scene. Waiting for Gibbs to give the okay. So she nods and stands.

“I’m fine,” she says and he nods. They both know she doesn’t mean it and later, much later, she’ll feel the ache in her lip and the guilt in her conscience.

“Let’s get you out of here,” he says and she’s glad he doesn’t call her on it. He wraps an arm around her shoulders, glancing at the terrorist on the ground before leading her over to Ducky. Ducky immediately starts to fuss and it’s comforting, but she still can’t quite relax. Gibbs pulls away and she grabs his arm to stop him.

“He shot her but I shot him,” she tells him, eyes steady but hands not. He takes it, squeezes it.

“Thanks,” he tells her.


	3. Relief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gibbs kisses her. 
> 
> In front of God, and of God in front of Tony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twilight AU.

Gibbs kisses her.

In front of God, and oh God in front of Tony.

She kisses him back because oh God the relief at being able to save him, to keep him alive. At him being alive and herself too because her chest aches, more so as he pulls her close to him and kisses her like it’s all he’s wanted to do for the past two years they’ve worked together.

She had expected the comments from Tony, expected something else from Gibbs, like a reprimand for taking a bullet for her. She doesn’t expect him to rip her jacket open to examine her vest. She doesn’t expect the sigh of relief. 

She doesn’t expect the kiss.

She welcomes it all. Welcomes his lips on hers, the way her body presses against his and the way he turns her slightly to deepen the kiss. 

She expects Tony to cough, or swear or laugh or something.

She doesn’t expect the swish of a bullet, the shot of pain that slices across the back of her head. She doesn’t expect Gibbs and Tony to both send her crashing to the floor.

“Sniper,” Gibbs says. “Stay down.”

She nods but it hurts and instead she groans and tries not to cry. The bullet has grazed her scalp, maybe deeper and she’s slowly fading out. Tony shifts, pushes something under her head. His own jacket, she realises when she looks away from Gibbs and at him.

“Ari?” he asks. Gibbs nods then looks at Kate. She wants to smile, to reassure him but she can’t.

“Stay with us Kate, we’ll get you out of here,” he tells her, squeezing her hand. “Let’s head for the stairs.”

Tony nods, and together they start to drag Kate over to the door of the stairwell.

“So, you and Gibbs been sleeping together for a while or this a new thing?” he asks.

“Dinozzo!”

“Tony!”

He chuckles. 

“Guess you’ve lost too much blood to blush, hey Kate?” Tony continues, “you can owe me the head slap later boss.”

“Oh don’t worry about that DiNozzo,” he mutters. “Still with us Kate?”

“Imma schlap him too,” she slurs. 

“Just hold on Kate and you can slap me wherever you want,” Tony tells her. 

They reach the door, knees scraped and Kate can feel her pants are ruined from the gravel. Not that she cares much, it’s all sort of going numb anyway. And dark.

“Gibbsshh,” she slurs. “Hurts.”

“I got you Katie,” he says, hauling her in through the stairwell door. He’s not gentle and she groans as she’s made to sit up, then bend forward. Her ribs protest, and so does she, her vision greying out at the edges. She can hear Tony making his way downstairs, feel fingers on her skull. “We’ll get you out of here.”

“All clear boss,” Tony yells up and Gibbs pulls her back against him. 

“Gibbsshh, gotta, gotta tell you shomething.”

“It can wait, we got to get you to hospital.”

“No, now, now, now.”

In her head, she can tell she sounds drunk, the usual disconnect between her brain and her mouth even thinner than usual but she can’t stop herself anymore now than she could if she were drunk. 

“Okay Katie, what is it?” he says. 

She can’t see him through the fog but turns to look at him anyway.

“Really glad you kissed me.”

It’s the last thing she remembers for a while as she finally loses consciousness.

Xxx

Gibbs is fast asleep stretched out in the chair by her bed. It’s dark in her room, the only light coming in through her door. She wants to sit up but right now there isn’t any pain. She knows that will change as soon as she tries. She takes careful shallow breaths through the oxygen mask before pulling it off and turning her head to look at Gibbs again.

He kissed her. 

It makes her smile and warms her right through to her core. 

She doesn’t know what it means, doesn't care because he’s alive. They’re both alive.

“What you smilin’ about?” 

His voice is low and growly, grumpy but there is a hint of a tired smile on his face when he looks up at her.

“You,” she says. “You kissed me.”

“Instinct,” he tells her, voice still low, “gut reaction.”

“Uh-huh,” she says, trying not to let the smile turn into the full grin. Which is easy when it turns into a groan of pain as she finally tries to sit up. He’s on his feet in a moment, helping her up and readjusting the bed and pillows behind her. 

She’s panting, chest tight, head spinning and throbbing in counterpoint and she regrets the motion. She snaps her hand out to grab his and squeezes.

“I’ll get a doctor,” he says, pulling away.

“No, I just need a minute.” She knows she sounds desperate but the spinning has already slowed. He stays, squeezing gently back.

“What hurts?” he asks.

“Everything,” she moans and he chuckles.

“That’s a good sign.”

“Bullshit,” she breathes out and he laughs then.

“Yeah, you’re fine,” he says then leans over and kisses her on the forehead. 

“Another gut reaction?” she asks. 

“Something like that.”

“Lips are lower down.”

“Uh-huh,” he looks, flicks his eyes down then up again and she smiles. “Want a sitrep?” he asks.

“Kiss first,” she tells him. Another chuckle and she really likes the way his eyes light up when he smiles at her. Likes the way his eyes darken as he goes into kiss her. He hesitates and she has just enough energy to tip her head up and kiss him. 

He groans, softly, into her mouth and she has to taste him, press her tongue into his and deepen the kiss. She wants to wrap her arms around him but she doesn’t think she can lift her arms. She wants to pull him close, pull him on top of her but the ache in her chest where the bullet definitely broke a rib is a good reminder of why she shouldn’t. She can sense the tension in him as he holds himself over her, not touching her anywhere but her lips as they both sink into the kiss.

When he pulls away, she’s unable to open her eyes but she smiles at him.

“Better,” she mumbles. 

“Go back to sleep Kate,” he tells her, “I’ll be here.”

“What about Ari?” she asks, fighting against the sleep that her body so desperately wants.

“Already dead.” 

“It meant something right?” she whispers, voice a little slurred again. “The kissing.”

“Yeah,” he tells her, “it means something.”

She nods, regrets it, but there is another kiss to her forehead before she drifts off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ugh, I'm slightly obsessed with Kibbs atm. 
> 
> Also, I rarely watch Twilight or Kill Ari, so if bits are wrong it's cause I have issues with watching episodes where my faves die.

**Author's Note:**

> Rewatching NCIS and writing for a ship no one is probably reading anymore? Yeah sounds like something I would do. Still salty they killed Kate. Can't help myself.


End file.
